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Yao had 22 points, 10 rebounds in Rockets victory
(AP)
Updated: 2005-11-03 13:56
But Yao got his third foul with 1:20 left in the half and the Kings went to
the break with a 49-46 lead.
 Sacramento missed 14 of its first 16 shots to start the
second half and the Rockets built a 10-point lead after dunks by McGrady and
Yao's backup, Dikembe Mutombo.
One of the NBA's highest scoring teams last season, the Kings were throwing
up air balls and bouncing shots off the top of the backboard during their
abysmal third quarter.
The Rockets couldn't pull away, though, missing 5 of their last 7 shots in
the quarter.
Yao returned with 10:53 left, McGrady was back a minute later and the Rockets
controlled their opener from there.
Barry sank a 3-pointer after McGrady came in for a 78-67 Houston lead and
McGrady's 3-pointer with 6:50 left gave the Rockets their biggest lead to that
point, at 83-71.
The Kings twice cut the lead to six, but Yao answered each time with
turnarounds from the baseline.
Barry had a steal and a layup in the final minutes to push the lead back into
double figures.
The Rockets won their season opener for only the third time in eight
years.
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